The store doors won't open for thirty minutes. But already half a dozen people are waiting in the glass chamber of Lidl des Ulis, in Essonne, this Thursday at 8 am. Most of them are present for the Monsieur Cuisine Plus robot, again put on sale by the German distributor, but at a more competitive price, at 199 euros against 229 euros the last time. This is the case with Luc, cart in hand. “My Thermomix broke down, that's why I'm here,” explains the man with graying hair. The multiple functions of the robot interest me. I will be able to cook good little dishes, like steamed vegetables. I am of Auvergne origin. Cooking is important to us. "
The gray and muggy weather does not discourage other customers.
A few minutes before the doors open, the line now stretches for several meters in front of the store.
Dahbia, mother of a family, leans on her caddy: “I have the Lidl flyer at home.
I saw that the robot was relisted today.
I would like to give it to my mother-in-law.
With a white mask on his face, Tony stands ready to enter the store first.
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“We saw the Monsieur Cuisine Plus robot in action with friends.
He convinced us.
Cakes for children, mash or steam cooking, he can do it all!
Its functions are almost identical to the Thermomix for a much more affordable price, ”he says.
And it doesn't matter if Vorwerk, the company that markets the Thermomix, sued the German distribution company for infringement, for the connected version of its food processor.
“I'm sorry to say it, but that's not our problem,” Tony says.
As a modest consumer, I only see the benefits.
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"More than half of the merchandise" sold
The automatic sliding doors of the Lidl finally open, the line advances.
People rush, without jostling, over the big boxes stacked in a corner of the store.
We are far from the crowds observed during the marketing of the Monsieur Cuisine Connect robot, but the interest is very present.
On leaving the establishment, Laurine, a marketing student, pushes her cart which contains the precious robot.
“It's for my grandparents.
They live in the South and they don't have a Lidl near them, she says. My grandmother loves to cook.
She finds Monsieur Cuisine very practical: it allows all the kitchen equipment to be grouped together in one.
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VIDEO.
At Lidl, crowd scenes for a connected robot cooker
About forty kilometers away, in Paris, no rush. It's even dead calm in the Lidl on rue Saint-Maur (XIth). When it opens, people line up to buy other household appliances or simply do their shopping. Rue du Chemin-Vert (XIth), some customers have come on purpose, but they can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Among them, the young Anaëlle, project manager, who is buying a food processor for the first time. “I love cooking for me and my partner, and thanks to telecommuting, I have more time than before to prepare good meals. I'm going to give this robot a try, because it's really cheap, and, if necessary, later, I'll buy another, even more sophisticated, ”she said with a smile, before leaving with her heavy. package.
On Twitter, the sale of “Monsieur Cuisine Plus” also provoked some reactions.
Here and there, in some of the 1570 stores that the distributor has in France, the enthusiasm even seems to have been strong as reported by this Internet user: “It was war at Lidl this morning, I have the robot. blood on my hands, but not mine ”.
Asked this Thursday evening, Lidl is also very satisfied with this first day.
“We have sold more than half of the merchandise.
It is a very good success ", affirms the sign which put on shelves" several hundred thousand "of copies of the device.
